Pat Leonard: With Titans inviting a trade back from No. 1 pick in NFL Draft, will Giants move up for franchise QB?

The Tennessee Titans don’t dependable similar they are acceptable connected drafting a “generational talent” with April’s No. 1 wide pick.

They dependable similar they’d similar to commercialized out.

Titans president of shot operations Chad Brinker is getting a batch of attraction for saying connected Wednesday that “if there’s a generational talent” disposable astatine the No. 1 pick, “you don’t walk that up,” arsenic helium archetypal said connected 104-5 The Zone’s Ramon, Kayla & Will show.

But the absorption should beryllium connected what Brinker called his perfect roster-building scenario: to get much picks.

“Ideally if we could representation it retired perfectly, you’d truly privation astir 30 picks implicit the adjacent 3 years. And 12 of those request to travel successful the apical 100,” Brinker said.

This means that the Titans are unfastened for business. And that means the Giants whitethorn beryllium lone 1 Joe Schoen telephone telephone distant from trading up to No. 1 wide to prime New York’s prime of Miami backmost Cam Ward oregon Colorado backmost Shedeur Sanders.

Would that beryllium wise?

The Titans desperately request a backmost themselves. So if Brinker and caller GM Mike Borgonzi would alternatively commercialized backmost than instrumentality Ward oregon Sanders, that speaks volumes astir their valuation of the passer that the Giants would beryllium charging up to take.

It lone takes 1 squad to person condemnation connected a subordinate to draught him, though. The Giants don’t person a azygous backmost nether declaration entering the offseason, and a large plaything connected a QB is worthy it successful a modern NFL that is divided by the haves and have-nots astatine that nonstop position.

To beryllium clear, the Titans sent beardown signals they bash not mean to instrumentality a backmost astatine No. 1.

Brinker said of incumbent Will Levis: “He’s gonna get an accidental to vie for a starting occupation adjacent year.”

That’s not happening with a No. 1 wide prime successful the building.

No evaluator of this NFL Draft considers Ward oregon Sanders a generational talent, either. So that statement of the subordinate the Titans would enactment and instrumentality does not see them.

It mightiness use successful their minds to Colorado corner/receiver Travis Hunter oregon Penn State borderline rusher Abdul Carter. But that’s a stretch, too.

So Wednesday’s Titans media circuit fundamentally served arsenic an invitation from Nashville to the remainder of the NFL to telephone Borgonzi’s telephone astir the No. 1 wide pick.

The caller GM adjacent joked that he’d already received immoderate brushed overtures.

“I deliberation I got immoderate feelers,” helium said with a laughter astatine his introductory property conference. “Yeah. Some congratulatory [texts] but ‘Yeah, support successful touch.’”

Still, Schoen mightiness not person to marque the commercialized up to No. 1 wide for the backmost helium wants, based connected the constricted contention astatine the apical of this draft.

The Cleveland Browns astatine No. 2, the Las Vegas Raiders astatine No. 6 and the New Orleans Saints astatine No. 9 basal retired arsenic the lone evident threats. The Seattle Seahawks look similar they’re excessively acold backmost astatine No. 18.

The Browns and Giants besides cognize that the Titans don’t look to beryllium picking a quarterback. So the lone interest is losing the accidental to instrumentality their preferred QB to different much assertive team.

That could beryllium capable to drum up a marketplace for Tennessee, adjacent with them signaling that the apical QBs volition inactive beryllium connected the committee astatine prime No. 2 if the Titans enactment put.

The No. 1 wide prime isn’t traded often.

The Carolina Panthers traded up with the Bears successful 2023 from prime No. 9 to No. 1 to instrumentality Bryce Young. They gave Chicago a haul: 2 first-round picks (2023, 2024), 2 second-round picks (2023, 2025) and wide receiver D.J. Moore.

The Rams sold the workplace to the Titans successful 2016 to determination from No. 15 to No. 1 to instrumentality Jared Goff: 2 first-round picks (2016, 2017), 2 second-round picks (both 2016) and 2 third-round picks (2016, 2017).

Before that, a commercialized to No. 1 wide hadn’t happened since 2001.

That year, the Falcons moved up from No. 5 to No. 1 to prime Michael Vick. Atlanta gave the San Diego Chargers their first-round pick, a 2002 second-rounder and a 2001 third-rounder.

If the Giants were to determination up from No. 3 to No. 1, then, the outgo evidently would not beryllium what the Panthers gave Chicago to determination up 8 spots successful 2023.

But it besides would not beryllium arsenic inexpensive arsenic the Falcons’ commercialized up for Vick.

There is an accidental outgo associated with a squad giving up the No. 1 wide prime successful an NFL Draft. And if the Giants were bidding against different squad similar the Browns, Raiders oregon Saints, determination would beryllium a outgo to triumph that contention and springiness Brinker, Borgonzi and the Titans thing sufficient.

Schoen besides would person the advantage, though, of letting Tennessee descent down lone 2 slots to No. 3 alternatively than plummeting down the draught board. So that could beryllium an vantage for the Giants successful sealing a deal.

Working with the Titans seems similar it would beryllium a small spot unorthodox based connected Wednesday’s unusual property conference, wherever Brinker wouldn’t adjacent fto caller Borgonzi beryllium astatine the dais by himself.

Brinker wouldn’t adjacent springiness a consecutive reply erstwhile asked doubly if helium had the powerfulness to overrule Borgonzi connected the team’s No. 1 wide pick. So Tennessee, it seems, has its ain problems.

Still, that’s not the Giants’ problem. Their occupation is astatine quarterback. And their occupation is two-fold:

First, they person to determine if immoderate of these quarterbacks is worthy of the No. 3 prime — fto unsocial the No. 1 prime — particularly erstwhile a QB-needy squad similar Tennessee seems truthful intent connected passing connected those players this aboriginal successful the scouting process.

The Giants person the aforesaid occupation arsenic Tennessee: they don’t conscionable request a quarterback. They request a ton of endowment upgrades passim the remainder of their roster, too. Maybe signing a seasoned quarterback, utilizing a mid-round prime connected a rookie QB and strengthening the roster astir their quarterbacks successful the archetypal circular is simply a amended stake successful their eyes.

Second, the Giants’ occupation is to perceive to what Brinker had to accidental connected Wednesday astir wanting to accrue much draught picks — an thought helium doubled down during a sit-down with reporters.

“As acold arsenic that No. 1 pick, you can’t walk up connected a generational talent. We won’t bash that,” Brinker said, per The Tennessean. “But we besides person to look astatine each the options disposable to america determination arsenic well, due to the fact that we privation to physique this squad for the agelong term. I mentioned this before, if I tin representation this retired perfectly, I’d emotion to person 30 picks implicit the adjacent 3 years, and 12 of those picks travel from the apical 100. That would beryllium ideal. That’s however you flip your roster, that’s however you get younker connected your roster.”

The Titans’ shot czar added that it would beryllium bully to find Jayden Daniels, arsenic Washington did. It conscionable doesn’t hap often.

“You don’t ever get the generational endowment astatine backmost close disconnected the bat, similar however it seems similar Washington,” Brinker said. “They’ve been capable to flip their squad beauteous quickly. That doesn’t mean we’re not going to try. We’re going to bash everything we can. We’re going to look astatine each avenue.”

The Giants are connected that avenue. Now it’s clip to spot if Schoen acts.